Midas
by I Can Craft-It
Summary: When a stray Cybug from 'Hero's Duty' consumes Felix's magic hammer, Sergeant Tamora Jean Calhoun will do her best to get it back.
1. Chapter 1

"Fix-It? What are you doing here?" Calhoun, gripping blaster, turned and hissed at the handyman. Felix recoiled after hopping in her direction, Tamora's intimidating form bending over his.

"I was waiting at the gate for an awful long time, darlin.' I just wanted to see if everything was alright." Felix straightened himself and noticed the commotion within the 'Hero's Duty' headquarters. Dozens of marines were stomping down the halls, investigating vents on the floor and walls, searching rooms; some keeping a sharp eye on the ceiling tiles above them, weapons at the ready. "I…I seem to have come at a bad time…"

"A Cy-bug was spotted during perimeter check and was tracked back to the base. Which means you need to get out of here, _now_ ," the statuesque blond spoke with an urgency Felix had witnessed before back in 'Sugar Rush,' years ago. Before he could say anything, Tamora barked at one of her men. "MARKOWSKI!"

The dangers of the present situation were sinking in, and Felix started to feel anxious. He stepped closer to his wife while his eyes tentatively surveyed the area, knowing he was much safer around her. The little handyman nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard the loud thunking of a soldier's boots heading towards them.

"Yes Ma'am," Markowski stood at attention in front of the couple, saluting to his superior.

"I want you to escort Felix out of here. Once he's on the train, you are to report back to me. Think you can handle it, soldier?" Calhoun had her doubts about Markowski's overall capabilities as a space marine, but she figured this task would be easy enough for him not to screw up.

"Ma'am yes ma'am! This way sir." Markowski gave another salute, and both he and the 8-bit began down the central corridor of the military base. Felix glanced back and over his shoulder to his wife, his thoughts filled with worry. He knew she could take care of herself in dangerous situations…but he just had this awful feeling that something was going to go wrong.

Unbeknownst to the two men, the stray bug everyone was searching for followed them at a distance as they walked; its pointed legs making a slight _tik-tik-tik_ against the floor of the vents it hid in. It's green, glowing eyes peered through the grating, all four of them fixated on one thing only: Felix's hammer. It had a heavenly, golden glow, and light danced on its surface whenever the small man attached to it moved. The incredible glint from the golden tool was captivating to the creature, and it grew more and more eager to have it as its own, but it would wait for just the right moment to attack.

Sergeant Calhoun growled as she performed percussive maintenance on her personal radar. The darn thing rarely ever worked, and this was a time where she desperately needed it to. There was no sign of the blasted bug anywhere! Anger finally getting the best of her, she threw the device against a wall, which seemed to do wonders, as it beeped to life. Raising a brow, the blond picked the device back up and peered at its screen through her bangs. She was nearly petrified at what she saw. All of the color draining from her face, she shouted orders to her men, directing them to the train station. As she ran, leading the pack, Tamora fought off the oncoming flashbacks of her previous loss of a loved one. She couldn't bear the thought of losing another. No. She wouldn't let it happen again.

"Here you are, sir. Have a safe trip home." Markowski walked with Felix down the stairs within the station and onto the platform, the train was sitting there, doors open wide.

"Thank you!" Felix hopped the last few steps and turned to face the marine. "And I wish you the best of luck with the-" The sound of groaning metal slowly filled the station, growing louder and louder. "Cy…bug?"

A screech pierced the air, forcing the handyman to cover his ears, and the grating of a vent fell to the floor and tumbled loudly down the stairs at his feet. Upon looking up, Felix froze, eyes wide. A Cybug, having grown too large to fit into the ventilation any longer, ripped at the square hole in the ceiling with its legs. It finally freed itself, and landed at the top of the stairway, cracking the tiling with its weight.

"BUG!" Markowski panicked, fumbled with his gun and began to shoot frantically at the offending creature. Swift, the Cybug unfurled its wings and flew upwards, dodging the deadly lasers before slamming into the marine, effectively knocking him, as well as Felix to the ground. His head pounding, the little handyman heard a scream as he slowly lifted himself back onto his feet.

"M-Markowski?" Felix looked up and gasped at the sight of the marine, who laid motionless on the floor a few feet away. Forgetting the Cybug, Felix removed his hammer from his belt and ran to the fallen soldier. He was about to strike Markowski with his magic hammer when the marine's body, and his gun, slowly faded out of existence. He had died, and was sent back to spawn.

Felix was alone.

Terrified that the bug had already killed his escort, Felix whipped around, spotting the creature staring at him as it slowly crawled on the roof of the high-speed train. Felix was frozen stiff as the Cybug let out another ear shattering screech and lunged towards his right arm. The handyman was able to pull his wits together just at the last second, and the hopped up and over the bug, still wielding his hammer.

The bug hissed angrily and the sharpened gears in its mouth roared to life, ready to devour. Felix gave a startled shout and ran, only to have the Cybug land itself in front of him to block his path. Ending the chase, the Cybug collided with the handyman, knocking the wind out of him. As he fell to the floor, Felix watched as his hammer slide away from his reach. The bug began to crawl towards it, but Felix, using all the strength he had, struck its head with the heel of his boot, buying him some time to get up. As soon as he was on his feet, he was off them again as the Cybug hooked a sharp limb on his pant leg and dragged him back down. Felix reached for the hammer and his fingers desperately pulled its handle into his grip. Successful, Felix swung his arm upwards to strike. But the Cybug had the upper hand.

Felix let out an agonizing scream as his forearm disappeared into the bugs mouth, trying desperately to pull it out, but the rows upon rows of spinning, inward pointing teeth made it nearly impossible.

That's when Calhoun and her men came onto the scene.


	2. Chapter 2

Her pulse roared in her ears as she and her men filed into the train station, only pausing a moment to take in what was happening. Down the stairs was her husband, a Cybug standing over him and pinning him to the ground as it attempted to swallow his arm. He was screaming. Oh Mod, _Felix was screaming_. The sounds of Felix suffering both terrified and enraged the sergeant. With an animalistic roar, Calhoun raised her gun and fired at the monstrosity that dared touch her husband.

Felix choked back sobs, wailing, kicking clawing, trying anything and everything he could do to try and force the Cybug off of him, but he just wasn't strong enough. All the while, the Cybug had pulled Felix's arm farther inward, it's first row of serrated teeth beginning to cut at the handyman's elbow. He screamed again, beginning to give up on his fight when suddenly the bug froze, the gears in its mouth stopping abruptly, causing Felix to gasp. The Cybug fell onto its side, it's weight dragging Felix with it, and he let out another yelp of pain.

As soon as the Cybug was down, Calhoun and her men were right there beside him. Tamora, held the sides of his face, looking into his teary eyes as Kohut and Spears took to the Cybug. As quickly and as carefully they could, they removed Felix's arm from the bug's mouth, and tossed the creatures body to the side. Despite Tamora's attempts to keep Felix's focus on her, the handy man looked at his arm.

It was an absolute mess, and Felix felt sick just looking at it, but his mind was only thinking about one thing.

"M-my," Felix trembled and sobbed. Tammy didn't know whether to let him try to say what he wanted or to stop him, so she didn't say anything as she cradled his head in her lap. Kohut kneeled down, medical pack in hand.

"It's all right, soldier, everything is going to be okay," he said.

"Nnno!" Felix was frustrated, his eyebrows knotting together as he attempted to form words between his sobs and gasps of pain. "My hamm—h-hammer..."

Tamora looked down at Felix's empty tool belt, her eyes widening as soon as she understood what Felix was trying to say.

The Cybug had eaten his hammer.

Before she could warn her men, the body of the Cybug began to glow, its form changing. Any standard Cybug would have died from a direct hit from a blaster, but this Cybug was no longer what the marines normally faced. The magic object it had just eaten, giving it special powers and abilities. Kohut turned and stood defensively in front of Calhoun and Felix while the other men surrounding them pulled their weapons.

In its new form, the bug was golden and its eye's glowed a brilliant, piercing white. The hole that Calhoun burned into its exoskeleton slowly disappeared with a glimmer. Rising to its feet the creature shrieked and took to the air, knowing it was outnumbered. The marines took that as an invitation for open fire.

"CEASE FIRE! STOP SHOOTING!" Sergeant Calhoun had to tear herself away from Felix in order to get her men to fully stop. The Cybug escaped and flew down the central corridor into 'Hero's Duty.'

"Sergeant, it got away!" Spears shouted to his leader as she knelt back down to her husband. Kohut dropped his weapon and rummaged through the medical kit for something useful.

"Good," she hissed back. "Now go find it and capture it! DO NOT KILL that Cybug, it has precious cargo."

"What do you want us to do with it once it's captured, ma'am?"

"Take it to the research lab and ask them if there's a way to extract an eaten item. Kohut and I are taking Fix-It home... Get to it!" Calhoun's men saluted with a unified "YES MA'AM" before retreating to go track down the Cybug all over again.

With her men gone, Tamora was finally able to focus on the handyman again. He had ceased sobbing, but was still in a pitiful state as he watched Kohut examine his arm. Felix, coming from an 'E' rated game, was not programmed with blood. Instead, his arm seemed to _ooze_ data, it seeping in out of his arm in numerous places where the Cybug's teeth cut deep. If someone was to look at the state of his arm at a glance, they might have mistaken it for glitching. Kohut was a little put off by this, but he still treated it as a standard wound, and began to gingerly wrap the handyman's arm with gauze after carefully removing what was left of this work glove. The air around all three of them was heavy as Kohut worked in silence, Tamora and Felix supervising.

"Felix," Tamora broke the silence, her calm voice seemed to grab the handyman's attention. His tired gaze met hers, and she smiled, rubbing his cheek with her thumb as her hands cradled his face. "You're doing good, soldier." She expected some type of reaction, and frowned when there was none. Felix just gazed at her, then to the ceiling beyond her shoulder, completely in a daze. Kohut noticed and put a hand on the sergeant's shoulder.

"He'll be okay, Tam," He and Tamora had known each other for a long time, and when the other's weren't around, he was allowed to address her by her first name. "He's in shock, he's going to be a bit disoriented for a little while."

Tamora nodded slowly, looking down sadly at her husband. She wanted to blame herself for all of this, but she knew Felix would have none of it. Still, she couldn't help the pang of guilt as she combed the brunet's bangs with her fingers.

By the time Kohut, finished wrapping his arm, Felix was a little more receptive, and was able to get up and board the train with some help from both marines. Countless characters stared and exchanged words with each other as the three of them made their way to 'Fix-It Felix Jr.' across Game Central Station. Calhoun, who held Felix's uninjured hand as they walked, simply glared at anyone who looked in their direction. Try as she might, she couldn't stop their curiosity. Oh there would be plenty of things to hear from the rumor mill tomorrow...

As they reached the gate to their destination, Calhoun dismissed Kohut, wanting him to go back to lead the search party back at the base. Kohut gave her a salute, bid Felix goodbye and returned to 'Hero's Duty.'

Tamora helped Felix into one of the small cars of the train to his game before squeezing herself into it beside him, careful not to make a move that would disturb his arm. As the train began to move, Felix rested his head on Tamora's side.

"I am so sorry, Tammy," he mumbled. "I've really made a mess..."

Tamora, still holding his uninjured hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"Don't blame yourself for something that's completely out of your control." If only she would follow her own advice.

The train came to a halt, which caught the attention of a certain wrecker and racer, who had been playing with a ball they found earlier in the dump. At first they smiled at the sight of their friends, but as they approached the couple, their expressions fell.

"Sweet Mother Hubbard, what happened?" Ralph stared at his co-workers wrapped arm, blue and white bits of coding beginning to seep from the seams. The handyman refrained from making eye contact with either of them. All he wanted to do was go home and have some pie.

"Stray bug," Calhoun answered curtly, directing Felix to the Niceland Village, where he built them their own townhome. The other two followed.

"Stray bug?" Ralph repeated incredulously, "How?"

"It just happens. You of all people should know that."

"You mean things like this has happened before-"

"Without your help? Yes. More often than we'd want the people of the arcade to know about. So I suggest you keep your mouth shut."

As Ralph and Tamora spoke back and forth, Vanellope walked up to Felix's right side, her eyes filled with concern as she stared at his arm, and up to his pale, tear stained face.

"Felix?" the girl said quietly, her voice sounded as if she was beginning to cry. Her throat felt tight. "Are you ok?"

Felix looked to the racer, focusing on her big, green eyes as he trudged along to keep up with his wife. The events, though half forgotten and blurry, began playing at the back of his mind. His eyes welled up with tears again as he looked away, unable to answer.


	3. Chapter 3

Tamora opened the door to their home, and the 8-bit hero made straightaway for the kitchen, eyeing the pie cover on the counter. Lifting the cover up, he was met with a tin full of crumbs, and audibly whimpered.

This just wasn't his day.

One would think with all the pies he receives just out of game play, he'd have a pantry full of them, but not at the rate he ate them. Felix could polish off a cherry pie in two seconds flat if he wanted or needed to.

"We can ask Mary to bake you a new one first thing in the morning." Tamora kneeled onto the kitchen floor and brought out a small orange bottle of little white pills from seemingly nowhere. "In the meantime, you'll just need to take these."

They were painkillers, given to her by Kohut while they were on the train. Felix was in such a daze that he hadn't even noticed. Even though Felix ad reservations about taking such powerful drugs, he trusted Tammy. He nodded slowly with defeat.

As Tamora administered the medicine, Ralph and Vanellope sat in the living room, having volunteered to keep an eye on Felix when Calhoun went back to her game. Ralph looked to the little racer, who had been uncharacteristically quiet since Felix and Calhoun arrived in Niceland. She looked at her feet as she lightly kicked them over the edge of the couch they sat on.

"Hey," with a gentle smile, Ralph lifted the girl's chin with one of his blocky, over-sized fingers. "It's okay, kid." Vanellope blinked away some tears and smiled. Even though she was nine, she understood the gravity of the situation surrounding the Cybug and Felix's hammer. If Calhoun and her marines couldn't figure out how to get the golden tool back, 'Fix-It Felix Jr.' would be unplugged for sure. On top of all that, Felix was injured and wasn't acting like his usual cheery self. It scared her. Vanellope scooted closer to her best friend, and he wrapped a hand around her in a comforting hug.

* * *

"Ralph and Vanellope are staying over, so if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask them. That's what they're here for." Tamora said firmly as she helped Felix slip his right arm carefully through the short sleeve of his nightshirt, kneeling on the carpeted floor of their bedroom upstairs. "It's going to take about an hour for the meds to kick in, and you can take another pill in four hours. Drink plenty of fluids, I left a glass of water on your nightstand." She hated to leave him, especially when he looked so miserable. But she had important, game saving matters to attend to in 'Hero's Duty.'

Once his nightshirt was on, Felix cupped her cheek with his left hand and pulled her in for the first kiss they shared that night. When their lips parted moments later, Felix gently ran his fingers through her hair.

"I'll be fine here, darlin.' I just hope that you'll keep safe while you fix the mess I've made," he said.

Tamora gave a small chuckle, pressing her forehead to his. "I can fix it," she said. "I know you can," Felix sighed, kissing her again before she got up to leave. "Now get some rest, soldier. I'll stop by later, hopefully."

"I love you, Tammy Jean," Felix laid his head on his pillow as she stood at their bedroom door.

"I love you too," Tamora gave a bittersweet smile as she quietly closed the door behind her and walked downstairs."Let's see what we got in here...Dominoes...Skip-Bo, Scrabble...Rummikub, _what?_ " Vanellope, sitting on Ralph's shoulder, rummaged through the assortment of games on the top shelf of the coat closet. "Ugh, what is up with the old grandpa games?" Ralph only shrugged.

"I found a pack of cards, if that appeases her grumpiness..."

"Egh, I guess. OH! Let's play 'Go Fish'," the racer grabbed the cards, glitched off the wrecker's shoulder and dumped them out on the coffee table in the living room. As she shuffled and dealt the cards, Tamora came back down the stairs.

"Sleeping Beauty is going to insist that he does everything himself, but if he comes down for something, at least attempt to get it for him, please," the blond said, wiping the bangs from her face as she marched towards the front door.

"You got it, Sarge." Ralph gave a mock salute.

"Is Hammer-time gonna be all goofy on those meds?" Vanellope asked.

"Most likely. Speaking of, make sure he doesn't forget to take another pill in four hours."

"Meds at 1:30am got it. Got any 3's?" Ralph held his hand of cards between his thumb and forefinger.

"HEY! Littlest goes first!" Vanellope pouted.

"Agh, fine. Go."

"Got any 3's?" Vanellope gave Ralph a sly look as she held out her hand expectantly. With a grunt, the wrecker gave her the two 3's he had in his hand.

With a smile and a shake of her head, Calhoun left the house and headed to Game Central Station.

* * *

It didn't take terribly long for Felix to fall asleep. As the pain in his arm dulled due to the drugs, he closed his eyes and slowly drifted off.

He found himself back at the platform in 'Hero's Duty.' Everything was silent, except for a faint, but familiar ringing sound. It was a sound that usually indicated victory in his game, but now, all it did was make him nervous. He wanted to leave.

Boarding the high-speed train, Felix fidgeted nervously as the double doors closed behind him. To his relief, the train began to move, and he sat as the train made its way through the cord to Game Central Station.

The victory chime rang out again, and the train made an abrupt stop, nearly sending the handyman flying out of his seat. Stabilizing himself, Felix looked up as the lights in the train flickered and turned off, the only light coming from the LED ropes along the center isle of the car. Panicking, Felix ran to one of the sliding doors to pry it open. He managed to crack the door, and upon doing so, a flash of gold nearly collided with his head. With a shout, Felix quickly backed away from the doors as a golden, pointed leg trying to force it's way in. Another leg smashed through a window, shards of glass spilling to the floor. The chime rang again, this time accompanied with a high pitched screech as a golden Cybug continued to claw at the doors, bending an twisting them with slight effort. Felix ran down the isle of the train car and threw open the door at the end. A rush of air sent his hat flying and he looked down as he stood on the latch that connected the cars of the train he stood between.

The ground under him was moving. The train was moving. His brows furrowed with confusion- when had the train started moving again? Another scream interrupted his thoughts and he turned, staring into the white eyes of the Cybug like a deer in headlights.

Felix gasped, and he was back in his room.

* * *

"KOHUT! Status report." Calhoun barked as she pulled on her battle helmet, his fuzzy reply feeding through the communication system built in.

"We've got it cornered, and are hoping an indirect blast from a grenade launcher will stun it long enough so we can contain it... How's your man?"

"He'll be better once we get that hammer."

"We'll do our best, ma'am."

"Good, I'll be joining you on the field shortly, over and out," the sergeant ended the communication, and pulled out her cruiser as she walked through the bay doors and onto the battlefield. Beyond the bridge to the tower, she saw a flash of yellow that contrasted with the sickly gray atmosphere. _Bingo._

She tossed her cruiser in front of her, and it unfolded itself in a snap, hovering just a foot above the ashy ground. She hopped onto it and flew towards the action.

Her men, were surrounding the golden bug, firing at it's wingtips when it took to the air, clipping them temporarily, as they grew back with a glint of light seconds later. Finally on the scene, Calhoun tossed out orders until they had effectively backed the bug into the east wall of the tower.

"SPEARS, GREEN! Get that containment unit ready. KOHUT!"

Kohut stepped forward from the half circle of marines that cornered the bug, his signature grenade launcher equipped. The bug hissed in his direction, positioning itself to take to the air once more.

Before it could unfurl its wings, Kohut fired. A grenade landed and exploded just to the right of the creature, damaging it. The bug screeched and toppled over, effectively stunned. It took 8 men to wrestle and lift the semi-conscious bug into the carrier, and then a few more to secure the carrier onto the truck Spears had driven out. Once the bug was successfully loaded, and on route to the research lab in the base, the soldiers whooped, high-fived, and gave each other congratulatory slaps on the back for a job well done.

"Well done, gents. Now let's go get some chow." Calhoun shouted, and her men celebrated even more. The rules were that no marine was to eat until the evening perimeter check was completed, and supper was 3 hours overdue. As Calhoun and her men filled the mess hall, she looked at the time.

It was just past midnight.


	4. Chapter 4

Felix cautiously took in his surroundings as he turned to face the digital clock, squinting at the bright red numbers that relayed the time: just past midnight. Realizing he was safe at home, Felix laid back down with relief, wiping the sleep from his eyes.

The Cybug encounter on the train had been nothing more than a nightmare… Nevertheless, his curiosity got the best of him, and he gingerly lifted his right arm up to his face and surveyed it. It was still wrapped in bandages, bits of code glowing faintly through the fabric. Unfortunately, that part of the nightmare had been real.

"Ralph! Now I have to set them up all over again!" Vanellope's muffled yelling followed by a loud "Shh!" seeped its way through the bedroom door and fell on the handyman's ears, loud enough to distract him from his thoughts. Furrowing his brows, Felix contemplated getting up to see what was the matter. His mouth felt dry, so he could easily play it off as just him coming down to get a drink. Besides, he didn't particularly want to fall back asleep in fear of having another bug related nightmare.

Having reached his decision, Felix sat up and tossed the covers off of him. Hopping off the mattress, he suddenly felt dizzy. It wasn't enough to cause him to stumble, but he paused for a moment, giving his head a moment to stop swimming before quietly moving on to crack open the bedroom door, listening.

Quiet bickering he couldn't quite decipher came from his friends downstairs. Felix was only able to pick out Ralph saying his name followed with something about sleep. After a small pause, a little voice uttered a bitter apology. Satisfied that the apparent argument was settled, Felix descended the stairs carefully, the digits of his left hand ghosting against the wall for support.

At the sound of small footfalls coming down the stairway, Ralph and Vanellope paused, turning to see the slumped figure of Felix disappear into the kitchen.

"Oh, Felix...I, uh- hope Vanellope didn't wake you," Ralph leaned over the arm of the sofa to peer at his friend as he milled about in the kitchen.

"Yeah right!" Vanellope shot back, "I bet the sound of your giant fist knocking over all the dominoes woke him up first." The girl huffed as she picked up some of the dominoes that fell onto the carpeted floor beyond the coffee table's surface.

"Look, I said I was sorry. But you didn't have to go scream "bloody murder." I bet you woke up half the neighborhood!"

Both of them lost in their tiff, they completely ignored Felix in the room adjacent to theirs. His brain a bit addled, it took the brunet a couple of tries before he remembered which cabinet contained drinking glasses. Climbing onto a stepstool, he reached in, grabbed a glass out and immediately dropped it as the effect of a startling, numb sensation that shot up his forearm. He watched with indifference as the glass bounded off the counter and to the tile floor with a smash.

Immediately, Ralph shot off the couch, nearly flipping the coffee table as he bounded to the archway into the kitchen. The wrecker looked to the floor first, the area in front of the fridge covered with shards of broken glass. Then he looked up to the handyman, who just seemed to stare at the mess.

"Whoops," the fixer finally said, quirkily. "Used the wrong hand." Before Felix could step off of the stool to potentially cut his feet on unseen glass, Ralph reached for him and quickly pinched the back of his nightshirt, lifting him up like a kitten, and setting him down on the carpeted floor outside of the kitchen. Ralph winced as he looked at the mess again.

If Sarge noticed even the slightest bit of evidence that something went wrong while she was away, his goose would be cooked for sure.

"Why don't you go sit down with Vanellope and I'll clean this up," Ralph motioned towards the couch that the sweet racer was peering over curiously.

Felix clearly wasn't used to having this kind of help, as he usually took it upon himself to take care of everything and everyone to the best of his abilities. And just as Tamora warned the wrecker and racer, (as if they didn't expect it already) Felix kept on insisting that he at least help.

"I don't want to be a bother-"

"Felix!" Ralph raised a hand in the air gesturing the handyman to stop. "Let _someone else_ help for once, ok? You were attacked by a Cybug today for Litwak's sakes! Go sit down." Whenever the wrecker raised his voice, any other character in the arcade would start to quake in their boots, but not Felix. In fact, the other two characters in their tight knit family of four were quite used to Ralph's temper by now, seeing as they had been good friends for years now. But Felix would be lying if he said he didn't recoil at his co-worker's pointed words.

As hard as it was for him to accept, Ralph was right. He wasn't in any condition to do much of anything. With his dominant arm having nearly been cut into ribbons and being on drugs and all.

The fixer complied with a sigh and plopped himself down on the seat of the couch while Ralph set to work in the kitchen.

"Whatcha doin' there, Sugar?" Felix asked Vanellope after watching her neatly place dominoes, standing upright in a long, curved row. He already knew, of course, what it was she was doing, but he wanted to occupy himself by engaging in simple conversation.

"I'm placing these so when I push that one at the very end, they'll all fall down!" the racer replied, not taking her eyes off her careful work. "I was almost done last time but SOMEONE knocked them over early!" Both she and the brunette heard a bit of a grumble between sweeping sounds emanating from the kitchen.

"I could teach you how the game is played," Felix scooted to the edge of the seat to get a better view of the girl's handiwork. Vanellope considered his offer for a moment.

"Mm-nah, it seems pretty boring."

"Oh it's not boring to me at all. Why, at Fix-it family reunions, a classic game of 'Dominoes' was an _event_."

Vanellope gave him a small, crooked smile. Unlike anybody else in their group, Felix loved to talk about his programmed memories. None of them really minded though, because most of his stories were actually pretty interesting, and Felix just had this natural talent for story telling. Though this time around, Felix kept going on tangents and losing his place in the story.

By the time Ralph finished up in the kitchen, Felix was really out of it. Trying so hard to focus on his story, while so many other things were distracting him. Vanellope gave Ralph a bemused look as he sat down on the sofa across from Felix behind her.

"I think those meds are showing," she said to him, knowing Felix wasn't paying attention.

"Have y'all ever played the game, B.S.?" Both the wrecker and racer turned their gaze back to Felix, who had found the deck of cards they pulled out earlier, holding them up with an audacious grin.

* * *

"Spears! Your team is doing rounds tonight." Sergeant Calhoun hailed the tall blond man, and he briskly gave her a salute, punctuated with the usual, respectful "Yes ma'am!"

All of her men were now fed, and were dismissed to go to the barracks to sleep off one of the longest days they've had since they were plugged into the arcade. As her men shuffled their way out of the mess hall, she noticed one opted to stay behind. Markowski.

Calhoun sighed, and as the numbers of men in the mess hall grew less, he drew closer, faltering before saluting.

"Permission to speak with you, ma'am?" He said tensely.

"Granted." The woman picked up her helmet from the table beside her and fiddled with it before cradling it in a single arm.

"M-ma'am, earlier with your husband...I-"

Calhoun felt her grip on her helmet tighten as she tried to hide the pain and anger that crept onto her features. She thought to take her headgear to his face like she had done multiple times before, but for some reason she just couldn't bring herself to do it. Perhaps her husband's forgiving nature was beginning to rub off on her.

"I am so sorry."

His voice was filled with the guilt that Calhoun has had to live with since she was programmed. Both knew that Felix could have died as Brad had years ago and she averted her gaze, hiding her eyes behind her long, uneven bangs. Saying nothing, she shot a finger to the exit. Getting the message, Markowski left with a ragged sigh.

She waited a few minutes, standing in the emptiness of the room. Taking some time to herself and her thoughts before she made headway to the research lab. Surely the eggheads down there had figured something out by now.


	5. Link to Continuation!

(( Author's Note: Thanks for the views! If you're eager to read more of 'Midas,' you can find its continuation here:  s/11390645/1/

Coneflower Adams is a good friend of mine, and she picked up this old fan fiction after I was unable to finish it. I also highly suggest you read the rest of her stuff; it's great! ))


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